Currently known systems for producing ice cubes have been unable to freeze alcoholic beverages containing ethanol into a frozen beverage cube. Ethanol has a freezing point of −114 degrees Celsius, which is significantly lower than the 0 degrees Celsius freezing point of water. However, attempts to freeze ethanol and serve it as an alcoholic beverage have failed because of its substantially cooler freezing point than water, coupled with a typical commercial and home freezer's capacity to only reach a temperature of −18 degrees Celsius or higher. The use of liquid nitrogen as a coolant to freeze alcohol, while sufficient to freeze liquid alcohol, presents safety concerns in its use. In particular, alcohol frozen with liquid nitrogen is too cold for consumption and may contain infused liquid nitrogen in the beverage, that when consumed and heated result in a phase change from liquid to gas which may rapidly expands in the stomach leading to gastrointestinal maladies.
A solution to the problem of freezing liquid alcohol is disclosed in U.S. Ser. No. 14/661,897, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. In that system, a heat exchange engine is used to lower the temperature of a thermally conductive tray and the alcoholic liquid therein. To achieve this, the tray includes an aperture sized to receive at least a portion of the heat exchange engine, which maximizes thermal exchange between the thermally conductive tray and the heat exchange engine. However, it is desired to provide a tray and means of coupling the tray and the heat exchange engine to maximize thermal exchange between the tray and the heat exchange engine, thereby increasing the efficiency at which liquid alcohol is frozen within the tray. It is also desired to provide a tray that facilitates ejection of the frozen alcohol from the tray.